In French Guiana, Haitian immigration is not new, however what is new is the extent of the phenomenon in the last 3 years, which has tripled the population of the slums where pile up, without water or electricity, most of the 11,000 asylum seekers which over 88% are from Haiti, for lack of hosting site in French Guiana (almost 200 for 5,000 applicants).

Note that the number of applicants has doubled in 2015 and again doubled in 2016 and the pace for the first 8 months of this year shows no slowdown.

It should be remembered that while the asylum application is a right, enshrined in the French Constitution and the Geneva Convention, very few Haitian applicants meet the conditions for asylum in France. Last year, only 2.6% of the applications were accepted by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and support from the French State. For those who are rejected and are without resources, it is the rule of clandestine work to survive in the fear of deportation...

This massive immigration also affects the school system which is overwhelmed, leaving more than a thousand children of migrants to the street due to lack of space in schools, some have been waiting for a place for more than a year...

Catholic relief made are possible in order to meet the growing needs of migrants for food, clothing and administrative assistance, but volunteers are worried every month about the rise of xenophobia in French Guiana.

TB/ HaitiLibre